Medienfabrik at the Winter Olympics in Sochi

Gütersloh. Sochi is calling - and Medienfabrik is on its way! The 2014 Winter Olympic Games start in Sochi on Feb 7. Until Feb 23, athletes from all over the world will compete for gold, silver and bronze medals in 98 events involving 15 winter sports disciplines. And Gütersloh’s Medienfabrik will be in the middle of it all: Editor-in-Chief Michael Siedenhans will move into an editorial office at the Deutsches Haus (German House) in Krasnaya Polyana, a ski resort in the Caucasus, for three weeks. From there, he will produce an eight-page newsletter for the German House together with his sports colleagues in Gütersloh. After Beijing 2008, Vancouver 2010 and London 2012, Sochi will be the fourth major sporting event where the Arvato subsidiary has worked closely with the German Olympic Sports Federation (DOSB) and German Sports Marketing (DSM) to realize products on site.

The daily “Olympische Momente” (Olympic Moments) newsletter will cover the performances of the German athletes, events at the German House, the visits of VIPs and business delegations, as well as featuring human-interest stories and behind-the-scenes events related to the Games. “Our editorial office is right inside the German House where everyone meets: athletes, sponsors, supporters, patrons and the stars of the Games,” says Stefan Postler, Managing Director of Medienfabrik. “‘Olympische Momente’ is the foremost on-site bulletin for the German Olympic village. The graphics for the daily publication are entirely produced at Medienfabrik’s Gütersloh site under Jan Gläsker’s direction, where winter sports expert Jochen Büttner will also handle the final editing. The project is coordinated by Jessica Sewerin. "During the crucial phase, more than ten employees will be working on the daily media," adds Tobias Uffmann, head of the department responsible at Medienfabrik Gütersloh. The printing is done at night in Sochi, so the newsletter can be delivered hot off the press the next morning.

Just in time for the Games in Sochi, the German Olympic team can also be followed via a mobile app designed by the DOSB. Fans can see all the social media posts of their favorite athletes pooled in a stream on their smartphone. The application is available for Android as well as iOS devices and was realized by Medienfabrik, which also produced the German Olympic team’s website (launched by the DOSB to coincide with the London 2012 Olympic Games).

The centerpiece of the app is the German Olympic team’s “social hub” featuring all the Facebook and Twitter posts by athletes, teams and associations. No other application lets users get in touch with so many athletes in one place. They can interact with the Olympic stars simply by swiping a given post. "The app is the next step in our communications tying in to the German Olympic team and their motto 'Wir für Deutschland' [We for Germany]. We now bring Olympic moments and emotions directly to fans via their smartphones. You can’t really get any closer to our athletes," says Christian Klaue, press spokesman for the German Olympic Sports Federation. (Download the app at http://app.deutsche-olympiamannschaft.de)

As it did at the Summer Games in London, Medienfabrik also designed the entire “look and feel” of the German House including the walls, banners and signs. A 685 m2 temporary living room for German sports has been created for the 2014 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, on the premises of the "Chalet" restaurant.

In the lead-up to the Winter Olympics, a special Olympic edition of the DOSB and DSM magazine "Faktor Sport" has already been published, spotlighting the athletes, Olympic as well as Paralympic. It also features a removable compact "Olympic planner" providing an overview of all the competition’s events and sports facilities at a glance. Medienfabrik designed the 76-page special issue and also supplied articles for it. "Faktor Sport" is published quarterly and, beginning with this issue, will also be available at all railroad station bookstores, airports, and many newsstands in Germany for €4.50.